Let Autumn commence!
Did you know that Iki Ramen does omakase? And a damn fine one at that?
Burrata/Hotate/Uni/Caviar…
Birru…
O-toro with Sansho/Ikura/Nodoguro/Tai/Volcanic Salt…
Grilled Seabream/Grilled Rice/Miso/Shishito…
Tako Tempura/Chili Oil…
Mentaiko Spaghettini/Crab/Truffle… HUGE BITE! Perhaps as good as the awabi spaghettini at n/naka!
A5 Wagyu/Menma/Nori/Tamago/Dashi…
Kyuri/Tomatoes/Sesame…
Uni Gohan/Seared Kinmedai/Ikura…
Yuzu Ice Cream/Shio Koji IceCream…
Umeshu Shot…
All so good!
Cindy’s Kitchen (Hacienda Heights) -
This place is always a delight. I’d like to come back with friends for a group meal so we can try more things from the deli counter and get noodles and dumplings fresh from the kitchen without the drive home.
I still love the spicy beef tendon, spicy bamboo salad, marinated cucumbers, and spicy bean curd. The seasoned eggs are good, too.
Got noodles and dumplings to go. The noodles solidified into a brick by the time I arrived home and it was a challenge to mix it.
Leftover deli counter stuff was great with home made congee.
Kitakata Ramen (Buena Park) -
Online ordering makes it so easy to order, pay and pick up. They are back to indoor, restricted capacity dining, so I don’t mind the drive to pick up so I can eat at home.
The ramen is so good here! My friend and I ordered the same extra toppings and realized we should have split the extra toppings to begin with. I’ll have to put a note to have the noodles cooked a little less. Following the instructions, to heat the noodles in the broth overcooked them a touch.
Honey Pig - Buena Park
After @js76wisco giving the approval, we decided to try Honey Pig in Buena Park. There was a short wait which was fine because upon arrival, I wasn’t too hungry. Note: by the time we left there was a significant amount of people waiting outside but it was a Saturday night.
Ordered the Honey Pig special pork belly and pork jowl. Both were excellent, but the pork jowl here is fan-fuckin-tastic. And the epic post BBQ fried rice with our leftover pork belly and jowl was even more insanely good.
The waiters bust their asses and provide excellent service. No complaints here and you get a ton of food. We took our half of our fried rice home and had it the next day.
Pork jowl 
get this
Post BBQ fried rice my goodness this was delicious. They even mixed in our leftover jalapeños we were grilling in pork fat from the grill.
Banh Cuon Thanh Tri - Garden Grove
Wanted to try some more banh cuon so gave this place a whirl. Small wait, place was packed and we were the only party not Vietnamese. We had to do the awkward clueless stare as the waitress started speaking to us in her native Vietnamese language. We ordered our food, and the waitress confirmed our order with the pictures in the wall. Ordered the bun cha ca dac biet (house special rice noodle soup) and the banh cuon trung thit dac biet (house special steamed egg rice rolls). Really enjoyed the noodle soup, nice broth and loved the 3 types of onions they add on top. The rice rolls were decent but lacked much flavor, texture however was nicely done. The nuoc cham was a little too sweet for my liking. But they also provide chili paste which is excellent. I also got a really awesome and refreshing passionfruit juice which stole the show.
Passion fruit juice a little sweet but perfectly tart and packed with flavor.
Damn we didn’t order the pork jowl the last time. Nice big fatty pieces. It almost looks like mini pork rib eye steaks. Glad you enjoyed. Just don’t go to the Irvine branch.
The fried rice at Honey Pig is our favorite of all the Korean BBQ places that make the leftover version. Always save some garlic, jalapenos and extra pork pieces to add back into the fried rice.
I would love to join that!
This is one of the toughest things to deal with in the take-out world. Would love any ideas folks have to deal with it.
Never met a pork jowl I didn’t like.
I’ve had some success by running the congealed noodles thru some cold water with a strainer.
Saison bread < Brooklyn Fare bread? Yay or nay?
Colonia Publica (Whittier) -
Taco Tuesdays here means 30% of all the tacos.
The tacos remain fantastic. We loved the pork belly, pastor, and cauliflower tacos the most. The salsas and cooking execution of Chef Diaz and his team are first rate.
The fideo here continues to be a warm and comforting hug customized to your liking. If you do it right, you can have plenty of vegetables in your soup to close out a meal.
I have yet to try their aguachiles and ceviches.
Dining is now indoors and outdoors on their patio. A portion of Greenleaf remains closed to vehicle traffic. Service is always friendly and warm.
Yes, found a bacon bar!! Whole Foods, I’ve missed the bacon bar.
Probably the equivalent of two packages of uncooked bacon, and some thrown-in sausage links, all for about $6.50 including tax.
Portugal Imports (Artesia) -
Their pastéis de nata are splendid.
OMG… which one? I have to say… I’m so glad the bars are back… I elbows down slather myself in purell before and after… but man… it’s made my lunches so much better. Also Pro Tip… the Soups at Amazon Fresh are better than the ones at WF.
This one was in Porter Ranch.
They have a device. You set your wrist on it and a disposable plastic glove inflates for you to slip on LOL
Bageloo in Diamond Bar
Cream puffs are outstanding. Smaller and crunchier outside than Chantilly. Fantastic.
Jam donut. Not jelly. You can see the seeds. Excellent chew on the donut. Nicely balanced with raspberry jam. Would highly recommend.
@A5KOBE the mochi donut twists and Basque cheesecake don’t come out until 9:30 so didn’t get a chance to try either. We’ve had the berry cake before and loved it.
Looks like a field trip is in order.
The combination of cheap nonorganic turkey, Doritos, mustard/mayo is magical. Great contrast with the crunch from the Doritos. So damn good.
It’s all that, without a bag of chips…
Stay out of Brea @Gr8pimpin. You’ve been warned
